Interest in Nick Roach Could Spell Trouble for the Bears

With Brian Urlacher's contract status up in the air for next year, Nick Roach has been sort of a key figure for the Bears early on in free agency. When Urlacher was sidelined with his hamstring injury, Roach slid over to the middle linebacker spot, and apparently played well enough to earn interest from six different NFL teams this weekend, some of them interested in playing him at middle linebacker.

This creates a problem for the Bears, who are already dangerously thin at linebacker and for whom Nick Roach could be an acceptable answer, if not a stopgap, at middle linebacker. The Bears are cap-strapped for the moment (though that could change in the matter of a move or two), but even with clearing space, with the interest Roach has garnered, it's possible other teams could pay Roach more than the Bears can afford.

But without Roach, and with an Urlacher on the decline, the Bears are put in a position where cheap linebacker talent is a priority. Dom DiCicco and Patrick Trahan aren't exactly guys I'd trust starting at either middle or strong side at this point, and the Bears need a lot of bodies.

Would you be okay with Roach staying in Chicago at a higher-than-predicted price, or would you let him go and find another player? How important is Roach staying?